20 January 2026, Great Britain, London: The rear of the Royal Mint building, which is to house the Chinese embassy in the future and where apartments for hundreds of embassy staff are to be built. Photo: VCG

In response to media inquiries on the UK government's approval of China's new embassy plan in London, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a press briefing on Wednesday that providing support and convenience for the construction of diplomatic premises is an international obligation of host countries.

The planning proposal of the new Chinese embassy project is of high quality. The application and its approval are fully in line with international diplomatic practice as well as local legal regulations and procedures, the spokesperson said. 

The UK government on Tuesday approved the plan for China's new embassy in London, multiple media outlets reported. In a written statement to the BBC, Steve Reed, the UK Housing Secretary said that "all material considerations were taken into account" and stressed that the decision is final unless successfully challenged in court. 

The broadcaster reported that the UK government emphasized that countries establishing embassies in other nations' capitals "is a normal part of international relations." The BBC also cited the planning inspector's report released on Tuesday, which twice referred to embassy-related decisions as being "nation-neutral." 

Opposition parties have expressed opposition to the Labour government's decision. James Cleverly, the shadow communities secretary, claimed the decision "a disgraceful act of cowardice from a Labour government." 

Responding to the so-called national security concerns, Security Minister Dan Jarvis said intelligence agencies had been "integral" to the process and he was "content any risks are being appropriately managed," the BBC reported. 

Li Guanjie, a research fellow at the Shanghai Academy of Global Governance and Area Studies under Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Wednesday that the UK government's approval of the Chinese embassy project after security reviews and assessments demonstrates that the hyped-up claims of "espionage activities" and "security risks" are merely pretexts and cliches used by politicians.

The UK government's final approval of the new Chinese embassy can be seen as a phased victory of pragmatic and rational diplomacy over an over-securitized mindset in the country," Wang Hanyi, a research fellow at the China-UK Center for Cultural Exchange at Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times.

In a Tuesday report, The Telegraph said "a senior official" told the media that the US is "deeply concerned about adversaries exploiting the critical infrastructure of our closest allies" after the UK government allowed the plans to go ahead. The Telegraph did not mention the exact date and occasion the "senior official's remarks were made to the British media.

With the Tory now in a sub-mainstream position, the pro-Conservative media is attempting to amplify the voices and stance of the Tories, while leveraging the stance of the US side to put pressure on the Labour government and hinder the recovery of the China-British relationship, Li said. 

According to Li, the approval of Chinese embassy project on one hand goes in line with the administration of Prime Minister Kier Starmer's commitment to resolving contradictions and differences between China and the UK through pragmatic cooperation, while it also bears a certain correlation with the current decline in UK-US relations.

UK-US relations have hit bump due to US President Donald Trump's recent threats of taking over Greenland, as well as his open criticism toward British policies on immigration and green energy.

As Starmer "turned his back on" Trump's proposed "Board of Peace" initiative, Trump used a White House press conference on Tuesday to increase his criticisms of a British deal to transfer sovereignty of the Chagos Islands, including a UK-US air base, to Mauritius, according to the Financial Times. 

"When the US exerts pressure on Europe, the UK has sided with Europe, which makes the US quite uncomfortable," Li said.

From the American perspective, compared to the "national security" concerns alleged by some in the UK, the US might care more about whether the new Chinese embassy surpasses the US embassy in elements like scale, style and design. "This would represent a projection of Chinese soft power and influence."